‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar (radhiyallahu ‘anhuma) was once performing tawaaf when he saw a man from Yemen who was carrying his mother on his back in tawaaf. As the man carried her, he was uttering the following words of poetry:
I am her subservient camel
Although her conveyance may
frighten and worry her, I will never cause her concern
Though I am carrying her (on
my back), the period for which she carried me (in her womb) was longer
The man thereafter turned to Ibnu ‘Umar (radhiyallahu ‘anhuma)
and asked, “Have I fulfilled the right of my mother (by carrying her in
tawaaf)?” Ibnu ‘Umar (radhiyallahu ‘anhuma) replied, “No! In fact, you have not even repaid her for one gasp she
emitted (due to the pain of labor).” (Shu‘abul Imaan
#7550)
The son of Husain (radhiyallahu ‘anhu), ‘Ali bin Husain
(rahimahullah), who was also known as Zainul ‘Aabideen (rahimahullah), was
once asked, “You are a person who always ensures that he is obedient to his
parents. Why is it that you then refrain from eating out of one utensil with
your mother?” Zainul ‘Aabideen (rahimahullah) replied, “I fear that my hand will reach for a morsel of food whereas my
mother’s gaze may have fallen on it and she may have wished it for herself.
If I have to take a morsel which my mother wished for herself, I will be
regarded as a disobedient son.” (‘Uyoonul Akhbaar vol. 3 pg.
97)
Lessons:
1. When the kindness and favor of
the mother is such that it can never be repaid, then how shameless indeed is
the person who causes his mother inconvenience!
2. Inconvenience
to mothers can be caused in many ways; physical, mental, emotional, etc. The
pious people of the past would exercise such caution in this regard, that
they refrained from any action that could, in even the slightest manner,
cause their parents disappointment.
3. When we are unable to repay our parents for their kindness, we should never ever make them feel that our service to them in
their old age is a burden and a favor to them. Rather,
always make them feel as if you are honored to have the chance to serve them.
|
Tuesday, July 12, 2016
The Debt that can Never be Repaid
The Debt that can Never be Repaid
‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar (radhiyallahu ‘anhuma) was once performing tawaaf when he saw a man from Yemen who was carrying his mother on his back in tawaaf. As the man carried her, he was uttering the following words of poetry:
I am her subservient camel
Although her conveyance may
frighten and worry her, I will never cause her concern
Though I am carrying her (on
my back), the period for which she carried me (in her womb) was longer
The man thereafter turned to Ibnu ‘Umar (radhiyallahu ‘anhuma)
and asked, “Have I fulfilled the right of my mother (by carrying her in
tawaaf)?” Ibnu ‘Umar (radhiyallahu ‘anhuma) replied, “No! In fact, you have not even repaid her for one gasp she
emitted (due to the pain of labor).” (Shu‘abul Imaan
#7550)
The son of Husain (radhiyallahu ‘anhu), ‘Ali bin Husain
(rahimahullah), who was also known as Zainul ‘Aabideen (rahimahullah), was
once asked, “You are a person who always ensures that he is obedient to his
parents. Why is it that you then refrain from eating out of one utensil with
your mother?” Zainul ‘Aabideen (rahimahullah) replied, “I fear that my hand will reach for a morsel of food whereas my
mother’s gaze may have fallen on it and she may have wished it for herself.
If I have to take a morsel which my mother wished for herself, I will be
regarded as a disobedient son.” (‘Uyoonul Akhbaar vol. 3 pg.
97)
Lessons:
1. When the kindness and favor of
the mother is such that it can never be repaid, then how shameless indeed is
the person who causes his mother inconvenience!
2. Inconvenience
to mothers can be caused in many ways; physical, mental, emotional, etc. The
pious people of the past would exercise such caution in this regard, that
they refrained from any action that could, in even the slightest manner,
cause their parents disappointment.
3. When we are unable to repay our parents for their kindness, we should never ever make them feel that our service to them in
their old age is a burden and a favor to them. Rather,
always make them feel as if you are honored to have the chance to serve them.
|
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
Do we owe it?
Do we owe it?
One day, a very wealthy man
was walking on the road. Along the way, he saw a beggar on the sidewalk. The
rich man looked kindly at the beggar and asked him why he was begging. The
beggar said, "Sir, I've been unemployed for a year now. You look like a
rich man. Sir, if you'll give me a job, I'll stop begging."
The rich man smiled and said, "I want to help you. But I won't give you a job. I'll do something better. I want you to be my business partner. Let's start a business together. The beggar blinked hard.
"What do you mean, Sir?
"I own a rice plantation. You could sell my rice in the market. I'll
provide you the sacks of rice. I'll pay the rent for the market stall. All
you'll have to do is sell my rice. And at the end of the month, as Business Partners,
we'll share in the profits. Tears of joy rolled down his cheeks.
Do I keep 5% and you get 95%? I'll be happy with any arrangement. The rich man shook his head and chuckled."No, I want you to give me the 2.5%. And you keep the 97.5%. For a moment, the beggar couldn't speak. He couldn't believe his ears. The deal was too good to be true. I want you to give me 2.5% of your profits so you grow"
The beggar now dressed a little bit better, operated a store selling rice in the market. He worked very hard. He woke up early in the morning and slept late at night and sales were brisk, also because the rice was of good quality.
After 30 days, the profits
were astounding! At the end of the month, as the ex-beggar was counting the
money. He told himself, Gee, why should I give 2.5% to my Business Partner? I
didn't see him the whole month! I was the one who was working day and night for
this business. I did all the work. I deserve 100% of the profits.
The rich man came to collect his 2.5% of the profits. The ex-beggar said, "You don't deserve the 2.5%. I worked hard for this. I deserve all of it!"
If you were his Business Partner, how would you feel?
This is exactly what happens to us!!! ALLAH is Our Business Partner…
ALLAH gave us life, every
single breath.
ALLAH gave us talents,
ability to talk, to create, to earn money
ALLAH gave us a body, eyes,
ears, mouth, hands, feet, a heart
ALLAH gave us a mind,
imagination, emotions, reasoning, language
In fact…ALLAH gave us
EVRYTHING INDEED!
So…in giving 2.5% Zakaat (alms/charity) is not only
an important pillar of Islam but also an expression of gratitude and love
for Allah Ta’ala. May Allah make us from those that pay their Zakaat, Aameen!
Saturday, March 26, 2016
Ibn Battuta
Also known as Shams ad - Din, was born at Tangier, Morocco, on the 24th February 1304 C.E. (703 Hijra). He left Tangier on Thursday, 14th June, 1325 C.E. (2nd Rajab 725 A.H.), when he was twenty one years of age. His travels lasted for about thirty years, after which he returned to Fez , Morocco at the court of Sultan Abu 'Inan and dictated accounts of his journeys to Ibn Juzay. These are known as the famous Travels (Rihala) of Ibn Battuta. He died at Fez in 1369 C.E.
Ibn Battuta was the only medieval traveller who is known to have visited the lands of every Muslim ruler of his time. He also travelled in Ceylon (present Sri Lanka), China and Byzantium and South Russia. The mere extent of his travels is estimated at no less than 75,000 miles, a figure which is not likely to have been surpassed before the age of steam.
Travels
In the course of his first journey, Ibn Battuta travelled through Algiers, Tunis, Egypt, Palestine and Syria to Makkah. After visiting Iraq, Shiraz and Mesopotamia he once more returned to perform the Hajj at Makkah and remained there for three years. Then travelling to Jeddah he went to Yemen by sea, visited Aden and set sail for Mombasa, East Africa. After going up to Kulwa he came back to Oman and repeated pilgrimage to Makkah in 1332 C.E. via Hormuz, Siraf Bahrain and Yamama. Subsequently he set out with the purpose of going to India, but on reaching Jeddah, he appears to have changed his mind (due perhaps to the unavailability of a ship bound for India), and revisited Cairo, Palestine and Syria, thereafter arriving at Aleya (Asia Minor) by sea and travelled across Anatolia and Sinope. He then crossed the Black Sea and after long wanderings he reached Constantinople through Southern Ukraine.
On his return to Fez, Ibn Battuta dictated the accounts of his travels to Ibn Juzay al-Kalbi (1321-1356 C.E.) at the court of Sultan Abu Inan (1348-1358 C.E). Ibn Juzay took three months to accomplish this work, which he finished on 9th December 1355 C.E.
Writings
In order to experience the flavour of Ibn Battuta's narrative one must sample a few extracts. The following passage illustrates the system of social security in operation in the Muslim world in the early 14th century C.E.: "The variety and expenditure of the religious endowments at Damascus are beyond computation. There are endowments in aid of persons who cannot undertake the pilgrimage to Makkah, out of which ate paid the expenses of those who go in their stead. There are other endowments for supplying wedding outfits to girls whose families are unable to provide them and others for the freeing of prisoners. There are endowments for travellers, out of the revenues of which they are given food, clothing, and the expenses of conveyance to their countries. Then there are endowments for the improvement and paving of the streets, because all the lanes in Damascus have pavements on either side, on which the foot passengers walk, while those who ride use the roadway in the centre". p.69, ref l
Ibn Battuta - The Forgotten Traveller
Ibn Battuta's sea voyages and references to shipping reveal that the Muslims completely dominated the maritime activity of the Red Sea, the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean , and the Chinese waters. Also it is seen that though the Christian traders were subject to certain restrictions, most of the economic negotiations were transacted on the basis of equality and mutual respect.
One can understand why these great Muslims are ignored by the West. But the indifference of the Muslim governments is incomprehensible. In order to combat the inferiority complex that plagues the Muslim Ummah, we must rediscover the contributions of Muslims in fields such as science, medicine, engineering, architecture and astronomy. This will encourage contemporary young Muslims to strive in these fields and not think that major success is beyond their reach.
Ibn Battuta was the only medieval traveller who is known to have visited the lands of every Muslim ruler of his time. He also travelled in Ceylon (present Sri Lanka), China and Byzantium and South Russia. The mere extent of his travels is estimated at no less than 75,000 miles, a figure which is not likely to have been surpassed before the age of steam.
Travels
In the course of his first journey, Ibn Battuta travelled through Algiers, Tunis, Egypt, Palestine and Syria to Makkah. After visiting Iraq, Shiraz and Mesopotamia he once more returned to perform the Hajj at Makkah and remained there for three years. Then travelling to Jeddah he went to Yemen by sea, visited Aden and set sail for Mombasa, East Africa. After going up to Kulwa he came back to Oman and repeated pilgrimage to Makkah in 1332 C.E. via Hormuz, Siraf Bahrain and Yamama. Subsequently he set out with the purpose of going to India, but on reaching Jeddah, he appears to have changed his mind (due perhaps to the unavailability of a ship bound for India), and revisited Cairo, Palestine and Syria, thereafter arriving at Aleya (Asia Minor) by sea and travelled across Anatolia and Sinope. He then crossed the Black Sea and after long wanderings he reached Constantinople through Southern Ukraine.
On his return to Fez, Ibn Battuta dictated the accounts of his travels to Ibn Juzay al-Kalbi (1321-1356 C.E.) at the court of Sultan Abu Inan (1348-1358 C.E). Ibn Juzay took three months to accomplish this work, which he finished on 9th December 1355 C.E.
Writings
In order to experience the flavour of Ibn Battuta's narrative one must sample a few extracts. The following passage illustrates the system of social security in operation in the Muslim world in the early 14th century C.E.: "The variety and expenditure of the religious endowments at Damascus are beyond computation. There are endowments in aid of persons who cannot undertake the pilgrimage to Makkah, out of which ate paid the expenses of those who go in their stead. There are other endowments for supplying wedding outfits to girls whose families are unable to provide them and others for the freeing of prisoners. There are endowments for travellers, out of the revenues of which they are given food, clothing, and the expenses of conveyance to their countries. Then there are endowments for the improvement and paving of the streets, because all the lanes in Damascus have pavements on either side, on which the foot passengers walk, while those who ride use the roadway in the centre". p.69, ref l
Ibn Battuta - The Forgotten Traveller
Ibn Battuta's sea voyages and references to shipping reveal that the Muslims completely dominated the maritime activity of the Red Sea, the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean , and the Chinese waters. Also it is seen that though the Christian traders were subject to certain restrictions, most of the economic negotiations were transacted on the basis of equality and mutual respect.
One can understand why these great Muslims are ignored by the West. But the indifference of the Muslim governments is incomprehensible. In order to combat the inferiority complex that plagues the Muslim Ummah, we must rediscover the contributions of Muslims in fields such as science, medicine, engineering, architecture and astronomy. This will encourage contemporary young Muslims to strive in these fields and not think that major success is beyond their reach.
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